THE parents of a Bristol student who killed herself after suffering with crippling anxiety have slammed the university over her death.

Natasha Abrahart, 20, was found dead inside her flat on the day she was due to give a presentation to staff and students in a 329-seat lecture theatre.

Her parents Robert, 65, and Margaret Abrahart, 60, have launched a landmark civil case against Bristol University accusing them of contributing to their daughter's death.

They claim the institution had a direct role in her death by not making reasonable adjustments for her chronic social anxiety disorder.

Mr and Mrs Abrahat also say Natasha was a victim of indirect discrimination and suffered discrimination as a disabled student.

A hearing at the Bristol Civil Justice Centre heard how Natasha had been diagnosed with the mental health condition two months before her death in April 2018.

The second-year physics student had struggled since childhood with her shyness and would "shut down when made the centre of attention or when confronted by people in positions of authority".

But she enrolled on a four-year masters course at the University of Bristol after expressing a fascination of physics.

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Natasha, who taught herself computer programming, made friends but rarely socialised outside her home and relied on pals to order for her.

She had struggled to complete one-on-on interview-based assessments as part of the course and attended only two out of five.

In her first assessment, Natasha was so shy she scored only eight out of a possible 20 marks.

The court was told there was a "significant deterioration in her mental health" leading up to her death.

She had searched on the internet for the link between depression and anxiety and Googled "why do I hate people?" and "why do I find people scary?"

Natasha also referred to herself as a "freak" and openly declared a wish to die, it was said.

YOU’RE NOT ALONE

EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide.

It doesn't discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.

It's the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.

Yet it's rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.

That is why The Sun launched the You're Not Alone campaign.

The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.

Let's all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others… You're Not Alone.

If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:

• CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
• Heads Together, www.headstogether.org.uk
• Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
• Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
• Samaritans, www.samaritans.org, 116 123

In February 2018 she emailed one staff member, saying: "I've been having suicidal thoughts and to a certain degree attempted it."

Natasha was told she would need to perform a group presentation known as a "laboratory conference" to pass her module.

This would be followed at the end by questions in front of her assessors and peers in the large lecture theatre.

Her parents say the laboratory conference could have been moved to a smaller venue.

They also argue the oral assessments could have been replaced with written versions or she could have been provided with questions in advance.

The couple do not believe any member of staff breached their duty of care to Natasha and say many had tried to help her.

Their lawyer said the reality was the university, which is defending the claim, placed an "assessment requirement she found too terrifying to face."

The trial continues.

If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.

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